Improvement in car-couplings



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UNITED STATES WILLIAM G. HAWKINS, OF PAVILION, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF PATENT OFFICE.

HIS RIGHT TO A. A. HOLGOMB AND G. M. GATES, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN CAR-COUPLINGS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 162,648, dated April 27, 1875; application tiled May 29, 1874.

To all lwhom 'it may concer/n Be it known that I, WILLIAM G. HAwKINs, ot' Pavilion, in the county of Kalamazoo and State of Michigan, have invented a new and valuable Improvement in a'SeIf-Goupler for Coupling Railway-Gars; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and ex act description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings making a part ot' this specification, and to the letters and tigures oi' reference marked thereon.

Figure l of the drawing is a representation of a sectional view of my car-coupling, and Fig. 2 is a top view. Fig. 3 is an end view, and Fig. et is a detail view.

This invention has relation to railroad-car couplers which are provided with the wellknown vertically-movable coupling-pins, and also with self-couplers, the latter being arranged in front of the former.

In couplers wherein such a combination exists it is found that when the self-couplers are used the distance between the draw-bars is so great that when the cars are in motion they are subjected to injurious and unpleasant concussions, owing to the endwise play which is allowed.

Io remedy this objection the nature ot' my invention consists in the use ot' a broad filling or glutting loop on the coupling-link between the two draw-bars, which loop is removably applied to the said link, and, when it is placed thereon, will take up the slack and serve as an intermediate abutment for the draw-head, as will be hereinafter more fully explained.

In the annexed drawings, A A designate two draw-heads, having daring mouths and recesses a a for receiving a link, B. Near the rear ends of the recesses a a are coupling-pins G O, which are vertically movable in holes b b, and which are used in coupling and uncoupling in the usual well-known manner. 1n front of each pin C, and pivoted at c, is a V-shaped coupler, D, the lower end of which drops into a recess, d, in the tloor of the draw-head and bears against the shoulder c. G designates a broad glut, which is considerably longer than the width ot' the link B. 'Ihe glut is composed of two metallic plates connected together by rivets lt h, leaving a space between the plates for the insertion of the link, the rivets preventing the glut from slidingotf the link laterally. The width of the glut G is such that when two cars are coupled, one end of the link being held by a pin, O, and the other by an automatic coupling, D, there will be very little endwise play allowed between the draw-heads.

Broader loops G can be used when the link is attached to the two couplers D D.

I am well aware that a linkuholder to be permanently attached to the ordinary couplinglink, between the two draw-heads, for the purpose of affording a handle whereby the link may be inserted into a draw-bar of a car ap` proaching to be coupled, without endangering the hand of the operator, is not new; hence I do not make a broad claim to such invention.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In a car-coupler, the metallic sliding glut, consisting ot the plates G G united together by the rivets L h, in combination with an open link, B, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim the above I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence ot' two witnesses.

NVILLIAM G. IIAWKINS.

I/Vitnesses:

J. M. FLINT, E. N. BURRIL. 

